Tiger Symposium in Washington DC June 9-10

0

Shares

Please see attached the draft agenda for this event – we are still awaiting final confirmation from one or two speakers. We have circulated the general invitation widely outside the Bank but would be grateful if you would send it on to other colleagues who may be interested.

The event is open to all who are interested. Pls could you circulate this note widely and request interested participants to respond to gaguilar@worldbank.org and pboateng@worldbank.org so that we can pre-register them for visitor passes. many thanks Kathy

As many of you already know the Bank is launching a new Tiger Initiative on June 9, 2008 in Washington D.C. There will be several events, including a morning event at the Zoo and a lunch hosted by the WB President, Mr Zoellick at the Bank These events will be attended by many high level dignitaries and officials but also some celebrities and leading tiger conservationists from the field. To take advantage of all the tiger experts who will be in town, the Environment Department has agreed to sponsor a Tiger Symposium. This will be a technical event on the afternoon of June 9 (2.30 – 6 pm) to be followed by drinks (6-7.30 pm) in the H auditorium; it should provide a nice follow on to the morning and lunchtime events.

The symposium will be open to Bank staff and to an outside audience – we are sending this general invitation to the main conservation NGOs and other interested institutions e.g. USAID and Dept of Interior staff. Pls circulate to the community of interest.

The theme will be Tiger Conservation ? Moving from Lessons Learnt Towards a Winning Strategy. There will be two sessions on Lessons in Conservation and Development and Lessons in Trade, Governance and Finance. The main speakers include many well-known tiger experts who are working in a number of tiger range states from Russia to Nepal. They will be asked to focus on describing what has worked and what still needs to be done. The sessions will conclude with a moderated Panel to begin defining next steps and priority actions to give some focus to follow up on the Tiger Initiative. We are hoping that this will start a good discussion and that the event will be the first step in contributing to some sort of action plan with specific benchmarks for what the Bank and/or other partners could do over the next 3 years to improve conservation of tigers and their landscapes.

Pls excuse this brief note. I am in Bonn at COP9. We will send out a more detailed agenda once all main speakers are confirmed. Also details on how to pre-register so that we can arrange visitor passes to the event. The event is open to all who are interested. Pls could you circulate this note widely and request interested participants to respond to gaguilar@worldbank.org andpboateng@worldbank.org.

The World Bank and Partners Launch a Global Tiger Conservation Initiative

Tigers are an indicator of the health of the varied ecological systems of which they are part. Given the appeal and ecological role of tigers, their effective conservation can provide an umbrella for all biodiversity. Tiger conservation is thus vital to the conservation of many other rare and threatened species, as well as to sustaining essential ecosystem-services that forests provide, such as watershed protection, soil conservation and carbon storage.

Despite their ecological significance, tiger populations are in decline. Tigers occupy only 7 percent of their historic range, and in the last decade their habitats have shrunk significantly. Within a century, wild tiger numbers have plunged from more than 100,000 to about 4,000 animals. Tigers have already disappeared from Central Asia, Java and Bali in Indonesia, and most of China. Habitat loss, combined with intense poaching of prey species and the illegal trade in tiger parts, has taken a severe toll, with entire populations eliminated from what were once considered secure reserves. Most tiger populations are isolated and small (numbering fewer than 30 individuals). In many of the tiger range countries, conservation remains under-funded and ranks low among government priorities. The good news is that tigers can recover if they are protected and have prey to eat. Addressing the threats to tigers calls for innovative interventions which tackle the root causes of the problem � the incentives to poach tigers and their prey and to destroy habitats.

In the past few decades, governments, the World Bank and numerous other organizations have been involved in a number of development projects as well as specific integrated conservation and development schemes (ICDPs) in or adjacent to tiger habitats. There is a clear need for a comprehensive empirical assessment of outcomes from these projects based on quantifiable indicators to guide future tiger conservation policy because there are indications that sustained success is elusive.While responding to the tiger crisis, the World Bank recognizes these problems and thus intends to work with leading scientists, conservation NGOs, conservation institutions and governments in the tiger range countries to improve understanding and develop effective strategies for harmonizing conservation with other development objectives. It will also support cross regional initiatives to protect tigers from any form of exploitation. The World Bank's engagement is consistent with the 2007 CITES Conference of the Parties, which called upon "all governments and intergovernmental organizations, international aid agencies, and non-governmental organizations to provide, as a matter of urgency, funds and other assistance to stop illegal trade in specimens of Asian big cat species, and to ensure the long-term survival of the Asian big cat species in the wild".

On June 9, 2008, the Bank will launch its tiger conservation initiative with a Signature Event, to be co-hosted with the Smithsonian's National Zoo, the International Tiger Coalition and the Global Environment Facility (GEF). At this event the World Bank will announce that it will:

Partner with leading scientists, NGOs, multilateral agencies, governments, and the private sector to promote tiger conservation

Initiate a series of high-level country dialogue workshops in the tiger range states, and promote international cooperation

Mainstream and adhere to "best practice" for tiger conservation in World Bank projects

Draw upon leading international conservationists and scientists to enhance knowledge, research and practice in tiger conservation and the prevention of illegal wildlife trade

Review the performance of key past projects on tiger conservation to develop lessons learned and good practice for future projects

Offer to host a 2010 'Year of the Tiger' Summit

Assess with major partners the financing needs of tiger conservation � the shortfalls and flows � and collaborate to find innovative funding sources and mobilize new resources for tiger conservation

The World Bank's involvement in tiger conservation and the evolving partnership between the International Tiger Coalition, the scientific community, the World Bank and GEF could improve global biodiversity management practices and related skills. Together with its many partners, the Bank will work to build greater awareness of the fact that maintaining tigers and other important species and their supporting ecosystems is essential to ensuring the health, wealth, and ecological security of human populations everywhere.

This message contains information from Big Cat Rescue that may beconfidential or privileged. The information contained herein is intendedonly for the eyes of the individual or entity named above. You are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution, disclosure, and/or copying ofthe information contained in this communication is strictly prohibited. Therecipient should check this e-mail and any attachments for the presence of viruses. Big Cat Rescue accepts no liability for any damage or loss causedby any virus transmitted by this e-mail.

A wonderful way to support the cats at no cost to you is to go to your Amazon.com account and sign up for Amazon Smile to have .5% of your purchases donated to Big Cat Rescue.

Cat Quiz

Help Feed Big Cats

One of the best ways to help is through general donations that can be used however it is most needed at the time.To make a general donation just click the Donate Now button below. This is the best way to give as it has the lowest credit card processing fees and is immediate help for the cats.

Big Cat Rescue is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, FEID 59-3330495. Florida law requires that all charities soliciting donations disclose their registration number and the percentage of your donation that goes to the cause and the amount that goes to the solicitor. We do not utilize professional solicitors, so 0% of your donation goes to a professional solicitor, 100% goes to Big Cat Rescue. Non-program expenses are funded from tour income, so 100% of your donations go to supporting the cats and stopping the abuse.A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION FOR BIG CAT RESCUE, A FL-BASED NONPROFIT CORPORATION (REGISTRATION NO. CH 11409), MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE 1-800-435-7352 WITHIN THE STATE OR BY VISITING www.800helpfla.com. REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.